PITTSFORD, N.Y. (WKBW) — The end of training camp at St. John Fisher University is drawing near. On Thursday, the Buffalo Bills had their second-to-last day of practice in Pittsford.
So what have we learned up to this point?
Here are six observations from the first six days of practice:
Ready for a bigger role:
We won’t know if rookie linebacker Kaleb Elarms-Orr is truly ready until we see him in an actual game, but he’s making a great first impression.
The fourth-round pick has found himself in a rotation at starting linebacker with Terrel Bernard and Dorian Williams. Only two of the previously mentioned guys will “start,” but all three will play.
“I wanna be the best, and yeah, I want it bad,” Elarms-Orr told 7 Sports. “I want to, you know, be the best defense in the league. I wanna be the best team in the league, and I want to be the best, uh, for myself. I have very high expectations for myself.”
It’s a small sample size, but Elarms-Orr has lived up to the hype. I have no reason to think he isn’t very much in the mix to win a starting linebacker job come September.
Bass returns to work:
On Thursday, Tyler Bass kicked field goals. I can’t say for sure if it’s the first he’s kicked this training camp, but it’s the first we’ve been able to watch him. According to Matt Parrino of Syracuse.com, Bass went 7-for-7 with four kicks made longer than 40 yards and one longer than 50 yards.
This is a very good sign, considering the mystery surrounding the Bills' starting kicker for the upcoming season.
CJGJ quickly returns:
After being carted into the locker room on Saturday, C.J. Gardner-Johnson returned to the field after missing just two practices. On Thursday, the Bills safety walked onto the field with just a small leg sleeve covering his left ankle and foot.
He said he met with trainers and they told him the pros and cons of returning so quickly, but he felt good and trusted his body. Gardner-Johnson did take part in team drills, so it’s clear he and the team believe his injury, as it currently stands, even if managed, shouldn’t be something that jeopardizes his availability in September.
Undrafted free agent making plays:
Kani Walker, a 23-year-old, undrafted cornerback out of Arkansas, has been a pleasant surprise six days into training camp.
“You always like guys that are an underdog a little bit and that know they have something to prove,” Defensive Coordinator Jim Leonhard said of Walker. “He's got size, he's got speed, he's got length, and that excites you as a corner. He's playing really well.”
Walker played for Bills cornerback coach Jay Valai in college, and that relationship has gone a long way. The young player knows he’s already got the belief of his position coach; now it’s on him to prove him right.
“I feel like my position coach and then my guys, like even the OG vets like Christian Benford, Dorian Strong, and Max Hairston, like I feel like we all lean on each other, like we’re all a unit,” Walker said. “Even though we're a young unit, we are one combined unit. I see that for sure.”
Walker has a long way to go, but his start to camp has been impressive.
Training camp MVP (so far):
I’m jumping the gun a bit here because I won’t be in Pittsford for the final day of camp, but wide receiver DJ Moore has been the best player through six practices. Everyone will immediately jump to the huge touchdown catch he had on day five, but it’s been so much more than that.
He looks like he’s been here for years, which is the ultimate compliment for a guy who hasn’t even played a game yet in Buffalo. There will be growing pains, but Moore should hit the ground running and immediately be the favorite to lead the Bills wide receivers in every major category.
Leonhard was asked about his defense going against Moore during practice, and this answer stood out:
“He's bigger than you think he is, right? He's stronger, and he's more explosive than you think. Like, I think sometimes you watch guys on tape, and you think you have a feel for who they are and what their skill set is, and you see it live and you're like, oh wow, OK, that's why he's so hard to tackle, or that's, that's why he's always creating separation.”
Steady Shakir:
I’ve had a few people ask me about Khalil Shakir because he hasn’t been one of the main guys getting talked about. Even with what I just said about Moore, I think Shakir has had a really strong camp. It feels like the addition of Moore will allow Shakir to have more favorable matchups and continue to be the Bills' most reliable pass catcher.
